The invention relates to a motion picture camera having a film magazine.
During the use of a motion picture film, dust, fluff or other foreign bodies on the surface of a motion picture film, in particular on the side of the light-sensitive emulsion layer of the motion picture film, can lead to damage of the film surface, inter alia in the form of scratches, which, during the subsequent film development, film processing and projecting of the motion picture film, can no longer be removed and are extremely disruptive. In particular during the film transport within the motion picture camera, in which the motion picture film is unwound from a film supply reel arranged inside a film magazine connected to the motion picture camera, is fed via what is known as a “magazine mouth” of the film camera, over a feed sprocket to the picture window, where the motion picture film is exposed, and transported over a take-up sprocket and the magazine mouth back to the film magazine and there the exposed motion picture film is wound up onto a winding reel, the surfaces of the motion picture film can come into contact with parts of the motion picture, and in particular the film transport mechanism and, in the process, the foreign bodies on the surfaces can cause scratches on the surface of the motion picture film. However, even without contact with parts of the film transport mechanism, grains of dust, fluff or other foreign bodies on the emulsion layer surface of the motion picture film would lead to their covering the emulsion layer at this point, so that the relevant film picture remains unexposed at this point during exposure in the picture window of the motion picture camera and causes disruption during the subsequent viewing.
In order to pick up fluff on a motion picture film, DE 298 00 862 U1 discloses a viewing device, with which fluff and other undesired objects on a motion picture film or in the vicinity of the motion picture film can be observed trough the picture window of a motion picture camera. The viewing device is positioned on or in the vicinity of the objective of the motion picture film for this purpose and the picture window is illuminated by a light source, in order to make the motion picture film in the picture window visible through the objective and therefore to detect and remove fluff on the motion picture film.
However, viewing the motion picture film through the objective is extremely complicated and requires a special illuminating device in order to avoid exposing the motion picture film when viewing the film before the actual film exposure. Furthermore, the removal of the fluff requires the motion picture film to be stopped, which is impossible or virtually impossible at conventional motion picture speeds. The handling required is complicated and needs an additional viewer of the motion picture film, so that the known viewing device is impractical and unsuitable for film recordings.
DE 689 21 055 T2 discloses applying transparent protective film strips with an adhesive coating to the surfaces of a photographic strip, the edges of the photographic strip, provided with perforations, remaining uncovered. The intention is thereby to avoid the negative images on the original photographic strip being scratched or damaged in any other way as a result of clumsy handling during the film recording or during the development, or dust, fluff, foodstuffs and other foreign materials coming into contact with the photographic strip and remaining caught there, so that cleaning or retouching of the film is required in order to obtain a good reproduction or enlargement of the pictures.
This method is suitable for protecting photographic films for still image cameras but not for motion picture films in conjunction with motion picture cameras, since either the still unexposed motion picture film would have to be provided with the protective films on both sides and therefore, with a predefined film length. Consequently, such film could no longer be accommodated in a conventional film magazine. Fitting protective films in the course of the motion picture camera likewise fails, since complicated additional devices would be required for this, which cannot be reconciled with the use and the operation of a motion picture camera. In addition, even the known method could not prevent fluff or other foreign bodies adhering to the emulsion-side protective film, so that the motion picture film is not exposed at this point during the exposure of the film pictures in the picture window of the motion picture camera and, as a result, disruptive shadows remain on the motion picture film.